


the only appropriate state of the heart

by deskclutter



Category: Princess Tutu
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-29
Updated: 2014-09-29
Packaged: 2018-02-19 07:09:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2379416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deskclutter/pseuds/deskclutter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When pushed for an explanation, Ahiru spilled forth.</p><p>Written for Fakiru Week 2014: Time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the only appropriate state of the heart

When pushed for an explanation, Ahiru spilled forth. "Ah! Ah! So, you know, I was thinking of where Drosselmeyer wrote the story, and he wrote it in the clock tower, you see, so I wondered, 'Why did he write in a clock tower'? Then I thought, if you live in the clock tower you can always hear the chime of the hour, and then of course you would never be late for anything ever again! But I also remembered that he used to stop time, if you remember, so I thought that maybe it was because he lived in a clock tower and had absorbed some timey powers--"

"That is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard you say," said Fakir.

"You never know!" Ahiru said. "But anyway, I thought it would be nice if you could have a clock too, just maybe not one like Drosselmeyer's because that one is kind of creepy, and it's not very good to sit indoors all the time, and you're supposed to rest your eyes by looking at nature! I was going to go for a really cool clock, where you could tell the time by the flowers blooming. Like, for examples, if the white water lily was blooming, you'd know it was six in the morning, or if the marigold was open and the sandwort was opening and the bindweed was closed and the yellow goat's beard was closing, you'd know it was fifteen past nine!"

"What," said Fakir.

"But then it got very complicated because night blooming flowers were a lot harder to calculate, according to all the books, so I decided not to do that. And that!" Ahiru said, triumphantly, slamming the side of a decorative stone pillar. "Is why I planted flowers in the shape of a clock! Ow."

Fakir gave her a round of lukewarm applause, but his mouth twitched. "But then I caught you digging up the whole garden."

Ahiru drooped. "You found me out," she agreed.

"Because you dug up _the whole garden_ ," Fakir said.

"Ehehe," said Ahiru. "It's a bit too weird an idea, isn't it. I was going to ask Charon if he could help with the clock parts, and Rue and Raetzel for help with the flowers." 

Fakir sighed. "I guess it can't be helped, since the garden's already gone anyway. We'd better just do it like you planned."

"Ehhh? Really?!" Ahiru said, grabbing his arm. Her eyes sparkled.

"It'll probably go faster since you don't have to keep it a secret now either," he pointed out. She swatted at him, and he asked to see her notes for what she had in mind for the flowers already, and they talked and talked about their flower clock until the sun went down on them and they went inside to light the lamps.

 

So when you go to see the floral clock of Kinkan Town, and you should go when it is in bloom, you will see a little plaque explaining in formal terms that a pair of lovers famous in the town created the clock. It is framed by red and yellow and purple blossoms, and across its round face, alight with flowers of silvery white, are figures familiar to the tale of Princess Tutu, who is beloved by the town, so it comes as no surprise that her story was esteemed by those two lovers as well.

**Author's Note:**

> With thanks to Terry Pratchett's Thief of Time for the flower clock that blooms at different times to measure the hour, which was itself based on Linnaeus' flower clock. The clock they eventually plant is the more mundane kind that you can learn more about if you google 'floral clock'.


End file.
